Specific Learning Outcomes
Explain how younger New Zealanders defined their identities in the 1960s
Teaching / Learning Sequence
- Introduce content on Protest and Vietnam; the origins of the conflict, the nature of the war, and why NZ was drawn in (i.e. allied to USA).
- View footage: “Vietnam”: Soldiers in Vietnam, Escalation, LBJ visit; “Youth and Radicalism”: Anti- Vietnam protests
- Discuss New Zealand’s role in the conflict: What were the conditions like for our soldiers? Why did we go? Does the footage suggest all New Zealanders were in favour of New Zealand’s involvement?
- Extension: Note that in the LBJ clip, none of the many protesters gathered were shown. The Anti- Vietnam protest footage was also never shown on NZ television. Why? What did censorship of some parts of the media tell us about New Zealand society and the generation gap?
